Chains Link Hearts, Not Souls
by Challen Evergreen
Summary: Tiernan must protect a girl, but when she is kidnapped, is it the girl he's supposed to be protecting, or is she a double like she says? And does he really care? First League Series, please Read and Review.
1. Hell's New Heros

**So, everyone who's read any of my other stuff, you know I mostly stick to writing HP FanFic's on here, but I'm going to write DH in the near future. Well, the League is just a big a part of me as either HP or DH, just a different part of my mind. I've been writing one for a while, though I didn't really start out as League, I changed it around a bit and, guess what, it fit the League world quite well.**

**I did some rewrites, changed some characters and names, and here it is. Although this is only the first chapter.**

**The world and all the characters _except_, my OC's, are owned by the Amazingly Talented Sherrilyn Kenyon.**

* * *

><p><strong>Hell's New Heroes<strong>

In the Ichidian Universe no one was safe. People were dragged from their homes and killed in the streets- victims of a ruthless tyrant who was bent on being the sole ruler of their entire empire. Those who opposed him and his army formed an alliance called The League which fell under the leadership of the Quorum.

After they put down the tyrant, the Quorum realized that the best way to keep trouble from starting was to cut it off at its head. A separate group of soldiers was needed, The League Assassins. Highly trained and highly valued, they are the backbone of the government.

But not even the League is immune to corruption…

Welcome to a world where corrupt assassination politics dominate everything and everyone- because sometimes the cure really is worse than the illness. It's kill or be killed. You're either the hunter or the prey.

But there are those who will protect you. Men and women who come from the streets and from bloodied backgrounds of survival. You just have to decide is they're better than the ones chasing you…

Or worse.

Sarcastic, loyal, highly trained and lethal, these men and women are the next generation of heroes. They know how to laugh in the face of madness and danger, and to endure the worst The League and their enemies can hurl at them.

Most of all, they know to fight and protect.

The war is on…

* * *

><p><strong>The above words are Sherrilyn Kenyon's words, not my own.<strong>


	2. Misson

**So, everyone who's read any of my other stuff, you know I mostly stick to writing HP FanFic's on here, but I'm going to write DH in the near future. Well, the League is just a big a part of me as either HP or DH, just a different part of my mind. I've been writing one for a while, though I didn't really start out as League, I changed it around a bit and, guess what, it fit the League world quite well.**

**I did some rewrites, changed some characters and names, and here it is, the next chapter.**

**The world and all the characters _except_, my OC's, are owned by the Amazingly Talented Sherrilyn Kenyon.**

* * *

><p>"You want me to do <em>what<em>?" A dark haired man demanded at the cringing man in front of him.

If one was to walk-in on this, they would see a handsome man in his early to mid twenties making a man in his mid thirties cringe like a little girl.

"I want you to go and make sure that nothing happens to their princess." The general said, puffing out his chest a bit.

"Why me?" Tiernan demanded in disbelief. "I'm not a freaking soldier, I'm a diplomat."

"Exactly." The general said.

"You want me to go because I'm a diplomat, but you don't want me to go _as_ a diplomat. Am I getting this right?" He asked, once more in disbelief, but this time his words held sarcasm as well.

"Yes." The general said as if it was the easiest thing in the world to understand.

"What is the purpose of this deception?" He asked, clenching his teeth to keep from biting the man's head off any farther.

"The princ –" The general began, only to be cut off by Tiernan once more.

"Other than this apparent need to protect a princess - of a world that we have very little contact with might I add – from something that is, as yet, unknown." He said, now grinding his teeth in his effort.

"Well, that's just it; you will be immediately recognized as Prince Tiernan Quiakides, Andarion Ambassador and thinks would seem suspicious, but as a server you won't even be glanced at." He said, as though it was the easiest thing in the world to understand.

"You don't _only_ want me to sneak onto a planet that we have no good relations with, but you also want me to do it as a _serving_ _boy_!" He asked, now offended.

"Yes."

"I'm a **prince**, not some idiot you can lead around with slight answers and shady details. Now tell me the _real_ reason you want me specifically to go when there are plenty of others with my training." The leash on his temper finally snapped and it was all he could do not to break the idiot in front of him into little pieces.

Tiernan turned as his mother and father entered. "But no one has your temperament my love." His mother said in her soft voice.

"You two are in on this?" He asked, once more in disbelief.

"We were asked who we thought would be the best for such a delicate job." His father answered.

"And you decided… me?" This time, not only disbelief and sarcasm, but also a touch of raised eyebrow.

"As a matter a fact, yes." His mother said, rather than his father.

"Why is this matter so delicate, if I may ask?" He asked politely, because there was no one brave enough to disrespect their mother in front of their father. He would break your neck with one hand and not flinch as your body hit the floor.

"That's complicated." His mother answered once more.

"In other words, you can't tell me." He asked, still trying to keep the cynicism out of his voice.

"Sorry son." His father answered this time.

"When do I leave?" He asked tiredly.

"Now." The general answered.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoy. Let me know with reviews and such. :)<strong>


	3. Nothing Is As It Seems

When I was little I was told the same thing over and over, 'One day you will be great. You will help nations become more, you will wipe out hunger and death, and you will bring up the conditions of many people's lives.' Well the person who told me that, lied to me. I was told that people would praise me, not only for my beauty, but for my love and sprite. That was also a lie. Everything that person told me was a lie.

I've since learned that when someone looks at a pretty face, they see a pretty piece of furniture. They don't see a brain, a heart, nor a soul or spirit. All they see is a piece that can gain them something in some way, whether it be politically, socially, or sexually. The whole world is about what can be gained, and not what is already at one's hands.

~ )()( ~

Dylan, or rather Princess Die-al-onous Ra Tri'an of the galaxy Tri'ane, wrote in her journal as she sat in silence, being seen but unheard, as the preceding continued around her. How could one change the world, when she wasn't even allowed to speak in private, let alone in public. The best she could do was nod and smile, and even that was frowned upon by most men –and women– from her home planet.

By the gods, she wasn't even a true Tri'ane.

"…excuse me miss, are you ok?" Dylan heard in front of her. She looked up, and up, and up. The man in front of her was a giant. She just kept looking up until she finally hit his eyes. Then, of course, she froze, or more correctly was captured, by the beautiful globes of colors.

"Are you ok miss?" He asked. She just nodded and stared. "Ok, that's good. Can I get you anything?"

Yeah, you and those eyes can take me the hell out of here and straight to an unoccupied bed, hell it can be occupied if that's what's available.

Now where in the hell had that come from? She knew she was unladylike, she'd even been called perverse for some of her comments, though she just considered it more passionate then the people of Tri'ane could handle, but that was bad even for her. A brush at her back brought her from her musing, and instead of answering she just shook her head at him and watched as he moved on.

~ )()()( ~

"I have made contact. Ready to extract target on your command." - "Good. We will give the go when everyone is ready and in position." - "Understood."

~ )()()( ~

Tiernan had looked into the girls eyes, and for some odd reason knew the muddy brown color was not the true color of them. Nor was he completely convinced the mousy brown of her hair was true either. So why was the girl being hidden behind so many masks? What did she have that needed to be hid? Not that it mattered, that wasn't his job. His job, at the moment, was to serve the guests milling around.

He walked towards an older lady who'd been waddling his way to show that was exactly what he was doing, his job.

~ )()()()( ~

"Father…" Dylan whispered softly.

The man swung around, about to hit her, but stopping himself in view of his guests. "What is it you want daughter." He snarled at her. "Have you not learned to be silent? In need of another lesson?"

"No father." She said, gritting her teeth and lowering her head in submission. "I but need to use the… ladies room." She'd almost said something much more crude, but decided her father's wrath wouldn't hold out well at such unladylike behavior.

"Go. But realize you will be taught another lesson in silence tonight." He said with a wicked grin.

Dylan nodded and strode off. Hell, she knew silence, she could keep her silence during the nastiest of tortures, that man who called himself her father had made sure of that.

~ )()()( ~

"Our target is moving towards the ladies restroom, is everyone in place?" - "Yes. Take her now as swiftly and quietly as possible." - "Understood."

~ )()()( ~

Dylan stood in front of the mirror, doing nothing more than staring blankly at her reflection. Who was she? What was she to do with her life? Of course the answer to both those questions was nothing. She was nothing and she would do nothing with her life beyond wishes.

Dylan felt the tears trying to push past her barriers, but she refused them, pushing them back as she always did.

She heard the faint open and close of the door, but paid no heed to it. Not until the bag came down over her head and something tightened around her wrists. What was this? Was she actually getting kidnapped?

"Don't make any noise and I wont have to hurt anyone else. Just be still and all this will be over quickly." A voice said.

She nodded, then felt a needle penetrate her neck. She fought the affects, but not even her system could take down the effects of the drug in a short enough period to keep her lucid. She went under at the thought of the man with the beautiful hazel-gold eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed, now please please please review and let me know you did so I can continue. Thanks.<strong>


	4. The Chase

Dylan woke to the feeling of a spacecraft leaving the atmosphere of Arane. She assumed the people kidnapping her didn't know of her inhumanly fast metabolism, or they would have given her a much stronger dosage, not that it would have done much better then fifteen or so minutes extra. She sat up, and cursed at her luck. She was handcuffed to a steel pole in the center of a ship, a very dirty ship.

"Are you serious Joe, I wanted a piece of her." A man said in a whiny voice off to her right.

"No dammit. She is the bosses lady." Another one said, his voice seeming closer then the man before.

"Well he wont never need to know." The first man's voice, definantly closer now, said.

"No Joe. End of argument." The man said and came into view. "I see our guest is awake. If I let you out are you going to cooperate little one?" He asked her.

She nodded while, at the same moment, devising a way to incapacitate him.

When she was freed she went straight for the throat, blocking the man's windpipe for a matter of seconds and dropping him to the ground. Before she could reach for one of her daggers, she felt a pinch and dropped as volts of electricity where distributed through her body. The man had found the one thing that would incapacitate her faster than a strike to the head. Even after he let off she still shook with the pain of it. She lay there, wishing she could move, anything, even a pinky, but knowing she would be unable.

~ )()()()( ~

"Dammit. Get this thing off the ground and after that ship." Tiernan shouted at the men on board his ship. His was a smaller ship then the one he was pursuing, so he'd be able to catch it fairly quickly, but during the time he was catching it, he didn't know what was happening to the girl he'd lost. When they finally caught up to the ship they called on it once, giving it the chance to give up the girl, but when he got no answer he ordered shots fired and told his men to prepare to board.

~ )()()()( ~

Dylan heard the voices coming over from the other ship, but instead of being grateful, she felt actual fear as the man hauled her to her feet and backed up, the trigger that was connected to the bolts in her chest, in his hand. If she got enough electricity, she would be out for at least four hours, and anything could happen to her in that time.

She watched as men in full body armor boarded and came towards her.

~ )()( ~

"Stop." The man, John, shouted. "If you don't, I shoot her full of electricity."

Tiernan wasn't worried until he saw the stark terror on the girls face. What would a little electricity do? It would hurt like hell but she would live. The man on the other hand, wouldn't. He shot the man and the man's fingers tightened on the trigger. The girl went down, convulsing, and his men fanned out, looking for other threats.

Tiernan ripped the bolts from the girls chest, but she didn't stop convulsing. At that he started to worry. Few, except one race he knew of, convulsed like that after something as simple as an electric shock to the body. But she couldn't be from that race, she was Tri'ane.

"I'm taking her back to the ship so the medic can help, meet me there in five." He yelled and headed for the ship, her in his arms.

~ )()( ~

Dylan felt the pressure building, she didn't know what to do with it, never had, but she knew if it didn't abate soon, she would die.

~ )()( ~

"Malcolm!" Tiernan yelled towards the back of the medic center. "Get your ass in here now, we have a situation."

"Don't gotta yell man. I is coming." He said, but stopped dead at the sight of the convulsing girl. "Man, you let a freaking Arkon get zapped, whatcha trying ta do, kill 'er?"

"She isn't an Arkon, she is Tri'ane." He snapped.

"No she ain't dumbass. She's Arkon, at leas' half." He snapped back and grabbed for a needle. He plunged it into her chest and she immediately relaxed.

When she stopped seizing he noticed her lack of bodice. It looked like the man had tried to rip it off but she'd put up a fight. It surprised him, almost as much as her being Arkon, which of course he believed. When Malcolm said someone was something, they were. He could see into people's chemistry, it was what made him such a good doctor, and also helped him know who – and what – he was treating.

"So… She's not Tri'ane?" he asked a little apprehensively.

"Oh, she is, but only part, the other part is def'nin'ly Arkon." He reiterated.

"Damn, I really fucked that up." He said with a bit of apprehension. If she was actually Arkon, then she could possible not wake up from such a shock.

~ )()()()( ~

Dylan felt the needle enter her chest and almost cursed, but she refused to give these people, whoever they were, the upper hand in this. She heard everything the men where saying, and almost cursed once again when the man brought to light exactly what she was. She also had to keep herself from flinching as the man laid his hand on her shoulder. But when he said he fucked up with the whole shocking her thing, she knew he hadn't meant to almost kill her, and she almost forgave him, but not enough to keep from flipping over and brandishing a dagger at both him and the other man in the room, the only two people on earth, besides her mother and maid, who knew her secret. She couldn't let them leave without being sure they would keep it.

~ )()()()( ~

Tiernan fell backwards as the women catapulted off and over the table. She stood in a corner, thankfully farthest from the door, and held a wicked looking dagger in Malcolm and his direction.

"What did you do to me?" She asked in Malcolm's direction.

He held his hands up in a submissive pose. The pose made Tiernan snicker and Malcolm shot him a glare. "I jus' shot you wit' a stab'lizer, nothin' more."

"And how did you know what was wrong with me?" She asked in a whisper of a voice, almost as if she feared the answer.

"I'm Strainion. I see inta people and 'know' wha' they is." He answered.

"What!" She shrieked.

"Jus' their chem'stry." He hurriedly added.

She didn't look convinced, but nodded anyway.

"So who are you? Because you definantly aren't who you were supposed to be." Tiernan said in a voice that sounded pinched.

~ )()( ~

Dylan bit her lip, they obviously thought she was someone she wasn't, so she would let them. "Who am I supposed to be?" She asked coyly.

"You are supposed to be the princess of Tri'ane, but she has no Arkon in her, only Tri'ane, so I'm assuming you're a double of some kind."

She nodded quickly. "That is correct. They never bring the real princess out, just in case of just such a disaster." She said, hoping they would believe her.

"Then who are you?" The man, the tall one who seemed in command, asked.

"My name is Dylan." She said, then inwardly frowned at that name. She had been called Dylan most of her life by the people who mattered, she'd even thought of herself as Dylan, but she wasn't sure she should have given him that name. Not that it mattered know.

"Dylan? That name definantly suits you better then the princess's name. So when are you going to wash out the dye and take out the contacts?" He asked.

Dylan felt her eyes widen and her mouth drop open. "How did you know about that?" She demanded.

"You are most assuredly not a brown haired, brown eyed, girl. So what's the real colors?"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

~ )()( ~

Tiernan stepped forward. "How do you not know the color of your own hair and eyes?"

The girl shrugged. "Because they never let me see it. When it came out, they put the color back in and they always change my contacts for me."

"Who is they?" He asked.

The girl looked towards the floor then back at him. "The people I lived with."

He didn't want to let it go, but decided that was all he was going to get from her. "We cannot return you right away, but soon we will."

She shrugged. "It doesn't matter anymore." She said mysteriously.

"Why?" He demanded.

"Because they are more likely to pay to keep me away then to get me back."

"Again, why?"

"Because I'm what some might consider a threat to the national security of my home planet, hell of my whole freaking galaxy."

He cocked a brow at her, "How can you be such a threat if you are nothing but a double?"

She gave a nasty grin, more a showing of teeth then an actual smile. "Because, it doesn't matter if I'm the princess or a slave girl, hell, I could be both and it still wouldn't matter. What matters is I'm a female who believes in things that none on our planet are allowed to believe in. I believe that everyone, even women, should have a voice, and if they can't keep me quite then I could very well start a revolution."

"Could a gal of such low standin's do so much?" The doctor asked, unsure something like that was possible. How could it be.

She nodded. "All females are nothing, so if one decides otherwise, then more would follow because none in our country, not even the Princess, Lady Die-al-onous Ra Tri'an herself, is allowed to speak out of turn without dire consequences."

Tiernan stood, completely dumb founded. How could a whole galaxy be hiding such a secret, and no one know? For that matter, how could any woman become anything except a ghost in such conditions? How had this woman come from such a place and still have a spine? Did she even come from Tri'ane, or was she a slave brought from another planet? Tiernan had so many questions, but none would be answered anytime soon. So instead he cleared his head and looked towards his newest "guest". "I have a room ready for you and we will head to our dock and decided what to do with you from there. How does that sound?" He asked her.

She nodded and tucked her dagger back into wherever her hidden sheath was. He nodded as well and started off, leading her towards where she would be staying for the duration of her stay.

~ )()()()( ~

"The girl has been taken by a second party. A third party went after the second party and I was told by our lookouts that she was taken from the second party by force and is now on board the third parties ship." – "This is odd. Follow this ship, but do not get close enough to be seen." - "Understood."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed, now please please please review and let me know you did so I can continue. Thanks.<strong>


	5. Mystery

Dylan followed the man, she still did not know his name, through the halls of the ship and into a well lit room.

"This is, interesting." She commented, a raise to her eyebrow the only indicator that she thought it was strange.

"Yes, well, we had a guest a few days ago that was… odd. We have yet to put everything to rights." Was his answer.

"Well, no matter, this is heaven compared to some things." She said with a pinch of her mouth.

"By the way, my name is Tiernan, and you can find me or Malcolm if you need anything." He said softly. "Now, I have to go call home base and see if there is anyway to salvage what has happened." He nodded and left.

Dylan turned around and around, trying to see the whole room. It was bright pink, the sheets where an ugly green color, and the lighting was red, giving the place the feel of some menacing, pink play house.

She walked towards the doohickey that would fix everything and started playing with it. When she was done she had a room of white walls, black carpet, and red bed coverings.

She knew she shouldn't have, the man probably just wanted everything reset, but she couldn't stand white bed coverings, so she stuck to only changing those.

When she finished with all of that, she went in search for the doctor, Malcolm.

~ )()()()( ~

Tiernan sat in his office chair and wondered how Tri'ane had kept such a secret. Not that it was illegal to keep your women silent, but many places frowned upon slavery, and that was a form of slavery. Tri'ane wouldn't have had dealings with many planets, especially the ones with female leaders, if that little fact had been known. But that was probably why they hid it.

"Have you finished at the Tri'ane Dinner?" The Captin on the phone asked.

"There was a little issue." Tiernan explained.

"And what was that?" the man demanded.

"She was captured while in the Ladies Room." Tiernan answered.

"What!" The man practically screamed.

"We followed the ship that captured her, unfortunately it wasn't her, she was a double. Now the president of Tri'ane will be even more leery of allowing his daughter out."

"This poses a… problem, but I am sure you will be able to fix it. Use the girl to learn of the princess. We need to keep communications open with Tri'ane."

After that last parting shot, the line gave an audible click and Tiernan knew the man was gone.

Why did everyone seem to want this princess? And why did Tiernan care? He wasn't a mercenary for gods sake, that was his damn brother. He rolled his eyes at himself, then went looking for the girl.

~ )()()()( ~

Dylan finally found Malcolm near the back of the ship. She didn't know what he was doing, but whatever it was, he was very intent on doing it.

"Hello." She whispered softly, which caused him to jump high enough to hit his head on the pipes above him.

He gave her a look, then raised an eyebrow. "You gonna jus' stand th're, or git down here 'nd help me?"

Dylan looked down at her hands, shrugged her shoulders, then smiled and knelt down. She scooted underneath the pipe and looked up. "What are you doing?" She asked in a curious voice.

He looked back towards the computer she now saw was stored under the piping. "Tryin' ta fig're out why we only have half our pow'r supply." He answered.

"Let me see that." She said and pulled it towards her. She gave a couple of quick taps, drug her fingers across the screen a few times, then flicked her hand down and handed him back the screen.

There was an audible pull back of the ship, then it flew forward.

Malcolm gave a look that clearly said he didn't know what to say. "Who 're you?"

Dylan gave a laugh, "I'm a girl with lots of time and a need to sneak out of Daddy's house without getting caught. I didn't always make it, but I did often enough." She said then scooted from beneath the pipe and headed back to her quarters.

~ )()()()( ~

Malcolm went in search of Tiernan, he didn't know what it was, but he didn't think the girl was being completely honest.

"What did you do to my ship?" Tiernan demanded towards him.

Malcolm rolled his eyes, "I didn' do nothin' dipsh't, the g'rl did. Hey man, I don' th'nk she's bein' compl't'ly hones' with us."

"What do you mean."

"I don' kno'w, I jus' spoke ta her. If she was jus' a sl've double fer someone, why would th're be secur'ty syst'm's ta keep h'r in?"

"Maybe because she's the Princess's Double."

"Yeah, maybe. But why would she cons'der whoever is keepin' her, her fath'r?"

"Now that, I have no idea."

"Th're is som'thin' she's lyin' 'bout, but I don' kn'w what." Malcolm said decisively.

"Ok, I'll keep an eye out." Tiernan assured him.

"Good."

~ )()()( ~

Tiernan went in search of Dylan. If there was something she wasn't saying, he needed to know.

He stepped into the cabin he'd given her, and the first thing he'd noticed was the room. She 'd changed the obscenely colorful room into something almost barren. The only color was the red bed coverings.

Who was this girl?

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed, now please please please review and let me know you did so I can continue. Thanks.<strong>


	6. More Questions, No Answers

Dylan ran her hands threw her hair once more as the water cascaded down her hair and back. It felt good to shower away the feeling of the men from the other ship.

She shut off the water and stepped out, pulling a towel around herself as she went.

She grabbed her panties from the pile and pulled them on.

There was no mirror, she'd specifically set up the room that way, so she pulled the contacts out with feeling alone. She knew how to do it because she'd been forced to every night.

She'd only tried to see the true color once, unfortunately her mother had come along before she could look, she'd never tried again.

She heard the door open and close, the soft swooshing noise her only indicator that someone was inside.

She pulled her dagger from beneath the pile of clothes and crept towards the outer room.

When she came around she saw a dark head bent over the monitor that controlled the colors and comforts of the room.

She crept closer until she was within striking range, then she pushed him against the wall, her knife in the small of his back.

What she hadn't expected was the hand that swept out and grabbed the knife. Then twirled her around and held it to her own throat.

~ )()()( ~

Tiernan felt as the presence behind him stalked closer. He felt the knife point against his back, and that was when he turned, grabbing the knife with one hand and the person with the other. He held the knife at the persons throat, not sure who it was.

He saw the top of the head, a mane of black hair cascaded towards shapely, he know realized naked, hips.

The shoulders were gently slopping and held faint, and not so faint, scars.

Her stomach felt hard against his hand, muscled and taunt, definantly the muscles of someone who worked out. Possible an assassin stow away.

At that thought he wondered where Dylan had gone.

He threw the girl on top of the bed and pinned her beneath him.

~ )()()( ~

Dylan felt a hand on her stomach, and the one holding her knife at her throat. She felt the arm that wound around her and the chest she was pressed against.

She was thrown atop the bed and the big body trapped her.

"Who are you?" The voice asked menacingly.

"Who are you?" She demanded back.

"I am the captain of this ship and you don't belong on it."

Dylan rolled her eyes in relief, it was Tiernan and he hadn't recognized her.

"Its Dylan you big oaf." She said with a laugh.

~ )()()( ~

Tiernan flipped the girl around and looked down at her, only now realizing that she held the same mouth, nose, and general size as Dylan. The hair and eyes, though, that was the difference.

He knew she wasn't really brown hair, brown eyes, but her true coloring was a shock.

She held beautiful blue eyes, bright as stars, and black hair that hung straight down, and was presently spread across the mattress.

He also noticed other things he hadn't noticed before. She had a slight waist, a tight stomach, hard legs and arms, and scars trailing across most of her body.

"What the hell happened to you?" He demanded.

"I was taking a shower." She said, a duh expression on her face.

"Yeah, well I wasn't talking about that."

"Yeah, well, nothing else is your business."

"I'm making it my business." He explained.

"Can I get dressed now?" She asked.

~ )()()( ~

Instead of waiting for an answer, she pushed him off her and headed for her dresser.

She didn't think about the fact that she'd lost her towel in the tussle, or that she was wearing nothing more than a pair of lacy black panties. All she cared about was getting away from the gorgeous man and his penetrating questions.

~ )()()( ~

She may have not noticed what she was wearing, but he definantly did.

He looked her over and saw what her clothes had hid. She had shapely, well everything, but she also had scars crisscrossing and slashing all the way up and down her body.

"If your nothing more than a double, why do you look as though you've been to war and back too many times?" He asked.

"Because, I have." She answered.

"If women have no voice, and your just a lowly slave girl, how can you have gone to war? And if I'm not mistaken Tri'an hasn't been to war in over two hundred years."

She turned towards him, "There is many types of wars. Not all are fought on fields or with guns and swords." She explained, then turned back to her closet.

Tiernan thought that over.

~ )()()()( ~

Dylan looked through the closet, and saw things in it she'd never have had the guts to wear, except they were the only clothes in the wardrobe. She pulled out the least revealing outfit, a floor length black skirt and red strapless peasant blouse, no shoes.

She looked down at herself and laughed softly. She'd be beaten for such an outfit on any planet of Tri'ane. It felt good.

Tiernan watched Dylan with a mix of surprise and something else. She was like no one he'd ever met before. He was still thinking about her when he got back above deck.

~ )()()()( ~

Malcolm sat in his cabin and thought over everything he knew about the Tri'ane Government and, more importantly, the Tri'ane Royalty.

King Die-ray-tion La' Tri'an, of the Tri'ane Galaxy, was a complicated man. He was known for his fierce tempter, but he was also known as a just and fair man.

His wife, Lady Sin-et-cora Va' Tri'an, on the other hand, was something of an outcast on Tri'ane. About a year and a half after her marriage to King Die-ray-tion, Lady Sin-et-cora was caught with another man. He escaped, she didn't.

High Princess Die-al-onous Ra Tri'an was known as the perfect Tri'ane woman. She was seen and not heard, and people rarely had reason to comment about her. She had mousy brown hair and dull brown eyes. She wore clothes that hid everything except her face and hands. She was known as the Ice Queen by many of the dignitaries that visited.

Princess Syn-al-onous Na' Tri'an, on the other hand, was anything but ice. She was known by many as one of the most passionate beings in Tri'ane. She had luxurious brown hair and burning brown eyes. She was a passionate creature who spoke her mind.

Strangely, she'd changed over the last year. Going from a woman who spoke out, to a woman who said nothing. Many said she wasn't even the same woman.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed, now please please please review and let me know you did so I can continue. Thanks.<strong>


	7. Not A Pushover

Dylan sighed as Tiernan finally left. There was something about him that just made her all shivery, that was something she hadn't really felt before this. She was sitting on her bed, debating what she should do about it, when she felt them enter some atmosphere or another. She could feel the slight shifts that others couldn't because of the Arkon blood running threw her, and she knew they were setting down somewhere. She stood and headed out the door to find someone.

"What's going on captain?" She heard someone ask as she reached the pilot area.

"We have a problem with one of our stabilizers that our engineer just found and if we don't set down now, we don't set down at all." He answered as he typed in codes and such for docking.

"Where are we?" The same man asked.

"Ritardon." He answered with a bit of a sneer.

Malcolm walked threw the doors and past her at this. "Thank the gods we don' have Syn's boy with us." He commented dryly. "May start another incident."

Dylan's brow furrow. "What happened to the accent?" She questioned, distrust in her eyes.

Malcolm laughed. "I can disguise it when needed, and on Ritardon, trust me, it's needed." He still held a faint twang, but the butchering of the words was gone.

"We're going to set down for a little bit - just long enough to get our part we need - then we're headed home." Tiernan promised as they finally landed. "I'll be back with that part in no time. LUCY! Get out there and figure out what in the bloody hell else is wrong with my engine." He called before exiting the ship.

Dylan turned as this Lucy walked out of the backroom. Lucy was tall, curvy, and had a knockout figure. She was also covered from head to toe in grease, wearing a pair of ripped jeans and a wife beater, and a pair of combat boots on her feet.

"Hey Lucy." Malcolm called.

Lucy nodded at him. "This our fake princess?" She asked, looking the girl head to toe. "You know anything about engines?"

Dylan shrugged. "Some." She answered politely.

Lucy smiled. "When then, come on girl, I need some help and you're just the right size. But first we need to get you in a pair of jeans." She called before dragging the Dylan into the room she'd just exited. She rummaged around in her closet before pulling out a small pair of jeans and a tight black wife beater. Then she pulled out a small pair of boots and a pair of socks. "You're about Alex's size, so all that should fit." She called before heading to the bathroom. "Go ahead and get changed while I grab a few bands for yours and my hair." She finished before entering the bathroom.

Dylan lifted up the clothes and held them to her body. If she _ever _got caught wearing something like this, her back wouldn't survive the punishment, all the more reason to wear it. She quickly slipped her skirt and blouse off before pulling the shirt over her head and shimming into the jeans. They fit a bit snug around her derriere, but the overall feeling was one she didn't know, but vastly enjoyed. She quickly slipped on the socks and laced up the boots just as the other woman walked out of the bathroom.

"Wow, you don't even look like the same person." The other woman said, shocked. "I'm Lucy, by the way." She commented as she walked over with a brush and the hair bands.

"Dylan." She replied simply as the woman began combing her hair back. When she was done, Dylan's hair was pulled back into a very undignified looking high ponytail that Dylan absolutely loved. Her hair cascaded from the ponytail and brushed along the center of her spine every time she moved her hair, but she could feel the air brushing along her neck and shoulders. She adored it. "Thank you." She muttered.

Lucy smiled. "I'm glad you like it, unfortunately we got to put it up in a bun till we get out of the engine." She warned.

Dylan shrugged. "That's okay." She assured the woman.

Lucy quickly wound the hair into a tight bun that rested at the crown of Dylan's head before standing. "All done." She told the girl as she pat the bun before stepping back. "Now lets see what you can do with an engine." She remarked, leading the girl past the rest of the crew and to the outside.

They'd just finished and were dusting off their hands - having found a few minor problems that Lucy said Tiernan needed to know about - when someone grabbed Lucy from behind.

"What do we have here, it's been awhile Lucinda dear." The grubby man said as his hands traveled along Lucy's waist and hips.

"Not long enough Gary." She snarled as she tried to yank herself away.

Dylan stepped forward. "Let her go." She said warningly. "I will scream and have every single man in this hanger running our way."

_Gary_ leered at her a bit. "Well, I promised them something, and you're just the ticket." He said as another man came up behind Dylan and laid his hand over her mouth.

Dylan angrily bit down as hard as she could on the meaty part of the mans hand.

"OWE! Boss, she bit me." He screeched angrily, yanking his hand away from her mouth before swinging her around and smacking her across the face.

"Leave her alone." Lucy screeched angrily as she tried to worm her way out of Gary's grasp.

Dylan looked up from her place on the ground before reaching under her shirt and yanking out the blade she'd had concealed there. "You really shouldn't have done that." She said angrily as she wiped the blood from her nose and mouth and pushed herself to her feet, holding the knife concealed at her side.

"What are you going to do about it?" The man demanded with a laugh as he stepped forward and grabbed her arm. She brought up her other hand and slammed the blade into his wrist, turning it so it scrapped painfully against the bone before yanking it back out and slashing it across his chest. "I really don't like to be hit." She told him angrily before bringing around her foot and kicking him back. She turned on the other man next. "Now, go away." She said angrily, her eyes flashing coldly.

The man looked between the crazy woman and Lucy before stepping back, hands raised. "I'm so gone." He promised before sending a look at Lucy that said he'd be back before he rushed away.

Lucy lifted an eyebrow as she glanced to the downed man. "You really don't like to be man-handled." She commented with a laugh.

"What in the hell happened here!" A recognizable voice demanded.

Without thought Dylan swung around, her knife raised threateningly before she rolled her eyes and dropped her arm back to her side. "We had a problem, we solved it." She commented as she looked at the downed man once more.

"Yeah, and you're bleeding." He commented angrily as he stepped forward and gently wiped a trail of blood from the corner of her mouth.

"Not the first, wont be the last." She commented dryly.

"Well then, I'm going to get that part into the ship so we can get off this hell hole." Lucy said simply as she took the part.

Tiernan nodded. "I'll send Malcolm out, just in case." He promised before leading Dylan back inside.

Lucy just shook her head in amusement, boy had it bad and didn't even know it.


	8. Escape

"I think I can handle a bloody lip." Dylan said irritably as Tiernan led her into the ship and towards the med bay.

Tiernan rolled his eyes. "Why is it I always get stuck with the difficult ones?" He demanded as he lifted her off her feet and set her on the med bed. He rummaged around and came out with a soft cloth and a bottle of water. "So what happened?" He asked once more.

Dylan rolled her eyes. "I honestly have no idea." She admit. "One minute we were dusting ourselves off and the next some guy had grabbed Lucy. He called her Lucinda or something and she definitely knew him." She commented more to herself then to him.

"And..." He demanded, carefully cleaning the wound before grabbing some gel and dabbing it on. "How did you end up stabbing someone and where in the world were you hiding that knife this whole time?" He asked.

Dylan shrugged. "Some guy came up to me and grabbed me and I took offense." She explained. "I don't like to be manhandled."

"And the knife?" He asked once more.

Dylan glanced to the side as she debated on whether or not to answer that question before finally deciding she may as well. "I had it strapped to my thigh since the beginning of the dinner." She admit. "I always sneak a knife." She finished self-consciously.

Tiernan laughed. "You're more and more of a mystery." He commented, getting a surprised look from her. "What?" He questioned, still holding a small smile on his face.

"You don't think it's a bad thing?" She questioned, her confusion clear.

Tiernan shook his head. "My sister hides a blaster under her dresses, my aunt doesn't bother to hide her blasters, and another one of my aunts carries around double swords. Don't get me started on all the other weapons my family tends to carry and wear." he told her with a smile.

Dylan smiled. "So, I wont have to meet all these rather intimidating people... will I?" She asked hesitantly.

"TIERNAN! YOU MAY WANNA GET OUT 'ERE!" They both heard someone that sounded suspiciously like Malcolm yell.

Tiernan instantly stood and pulled his blaster before glancing at Dylan.

Dylan stood, pulling her own knife and palming it. "Lead the way the captain." She told him with a smirk.

Tiernan couldn't help returning the sexy little smirk with one of his own before heading out of the med bay and towards the control center of his ship. When he reached the area he came around with the blaster held out, only to roll his eyes and lower it. "Malcolm." He growled angrily. "We do not yell like Rit's are on our ass when my cousin jumps aboard. We only do that when it's my sister." He finished firmly.

Malcolm shrugged. "Fine, I suppose you _don't_ want to know that Rit's are coming towards our ass." He said simply before pointing out the window where soldiers were closing in.

"Shit!" He said angrily before jumping into the control seat and firing up the engines. "I fucking hate you Malcolm."

"Glad to oblige." Malcolm taunted.

Dylan sighed as she slid into the room and positioned herself against the wall near a nice hand-hold.

"Strap in or hang tight, we're about to get bumpy." He informed his crew.

Dylan heard a guy growl and glanced over to find a rather attractive man standing beside a petite woman. She figured this was the cousin, couldn't be anyone else. The unnamed guy gently pushed his... wife? into a chair and walked over to the other control seat. One of the regulars she'd seen around stood and - if his face was any indicator - gratefully gave the seat up to this unnamed man.

"Looks like we're going to find out if a diplomat really can fly." The unnamed man teased, only to get a rather rude hand gesture in return.

The woman sighed. "Boys, can we get this thing off the ground so I can get back to my babies and my own ship. I don't relish being caught by anyone, especially the Rits." She commented bluntly.

"Why are you on my ship anyways?" Tiernan demanded with an exasperated sigh as he continued flipping switches as though in no hurry.

The unnamed man shrugged. "It seems your parents were worried after so much radio silence, and since I was closest they wanted me to find out if you were still alive." He commented with a shrug.

Tiernan rolled his eyes. "Seriously, they sent me on this little mission and yet they can't trust me to see it threw." He said irritably as he finally flipped the last button. "I hope your ships already off world, because by the time we're done here they're going to want to kill anyone of us they can get ahold of." He told him warningly before suddenly hitting the accelerator and shooting forward. "Someone override those doors!" He shouted as they headed straight for them.

"Boss!" The man at the computer said with a bit of worry in his voice.

"Please tell me that's not you telling me it can't be done." Tiernan said as they got closer to the doors.

"Where's Nero when we need him?" The female demanded as she gripped her seat. "If Dev dies I'm letting his mother beat you half to death before I finish you." She said, her voice tight but not scared.

Tiernan laughed. "No worries, we won't die... right?" He glanced towards their computer guy.

"Umm..." He said as he typed furiously. "You all have to realize I'm not Syn!"

Malcolm glanced towards Dylan pointedly. She shook her head, she didn't want to put herself into the spotlight like that. "We'll die otherwise." He said loud enough for her to hear.

Dylan cursed as she shot him a rude hand gesture before stomping over to the computer. "Move." She barked angrily. The man quickly stepped aside and she took his seat. "I can't make any promises." She warned as she began typing away. "I only ever got threw my... handler's security and I don't know if these peoples are much different. I've never been off world until now." She warned as she began typing. "But..." She typed a bit more. "It seems..." She typed a couple more sets. "That I'm in!" She said louder before as she continued typing. "Okay Tiernan, be ready."

"I'm completely ready." He promised.

"Five... four... three... two... one... ... ... OPEN!" She shouted as the doors slid open and he shot through and into the atmosphere.

Tiernan breathed a sigh of relief as he quickly shot away from the planet.


	9. The Truth Reveled, Well Some Of It

"Okay so should I ask or are you just going to tell me?" A male voice demanded the moment they were far enough from the planet to know they were safe, eyes on Dylan in a rather suspicious manner.

Tiernan rolled his eyes as he stood, stretching as though he didn't have a single care in the world. "Tell you what?" He asked innocently enough as he shooed his crew from the room with just his eyes.

"How about the unknown woman sitting in that seat who just overrode Rit security like it was nothing more then a back-world's bank safe." The man demanded angrily as he glanced towards his wife then back at the girl. "I hate to say this, but last time an unknown woman with special skills ended up on one of our ships..." He glanced at the small woman apologetically and shrugged. "Sorry honey but it's true and not everyone has as good a heart as you."

The woman smiled. "It's fine and it's true. I'm sorry Tiernan but you can't blame him for being suspicious... your parents say you went silent and we find you on Rit soil with some woman who can override their security. Tell me that doesn't seem suspicious in this family." She said gently.

Tiernan rolled his eyes. "Devin... meet Dylan, she's a... kidnap victim that we rescued out of the... goodness of our hearts." He turned towards the woman with a wink. "Dylan, meet my paranoid cousin Devin and his wife Alix... if you haven't figured out, Alix was sent in by the Rit's to capture Devyn and instead ended up choosing the bounder. Ah it's the typical love story." He said sarcastically before shaking his head. "I promise Devyn, this isn't what you think."

"Explain why the Tri'ane are calling for your death?" Devyn said, stopping the man's cockiness in a second. "Yeah... they say you kidnapped their princess." He glanced towards the woman. "You don't much look like their princess."

Dylan swallowed and glanced towards Tiernan before sighing. "I'm not... exactly."

"Exactly." Tiernan said slowly, crossing his arms as his eyes pinned the female to her seat. "Want to explain that one to me." He demanded fiercely.

Dylan swallowed before her shoulders slumped. "It's not just a secret from other worlds its like... a _secret_, like if the king finds out my mother will be publicly beaten and slowly starved for treason and about a hundred other things and then I'll be hunted down and the same thing will happen. If he's _really_ angry, he'll search for my true father and have a contract called out on him, and then possibly kill everyone else in the man's life. You don't understand, I didn't lie to _you_ personally, I just... I can't risk my family." She explained before sighing. "My mother is the wife of the king of Tri'ane... but my father really _is_ Arkon. He's a warrior who found his way to our planet and saved my father's life about two years before I was born. To honor him for this service, the king treated him as well - if not better - then the dignitaries from neighboring kingdoms. That's how he met my mother..."

Dylan crossed her arms over her chest in a manner of protection from what was to come. "He fell in love with her, and she fell in love with his gentle respect and ability to see beauty even if the life she was living. When I was born she knew that was it, I had my father's coloring and when I grew older, she was told by a wise woman that I would look like a female version of him. If my mother did not hide me, the king would murder me and call up a war against the Arkon nation for the insult of the rape of my mother and the murder of his first born. So she hid me and... now I'm here." She finished, clenching her arms around herself even tighter as she waited for the condemnation.

Instead what came was a "See, nothing to worry over." Tiernan's voice said uncaringly as he smirked. "Told you she wasn't a danger."

Devin just made a mouth noise before glancing at his wife. "This family never does anything by halves.


End file.
